Into the Blackness (Blackness Series Book 4)

by Norma Jeanne Karlsson

  “I lost my temper last night guys. I shouldn’t have thrown the bottle and I sure as shit shouldn’t have left the mess,” Nick states emphatically, embarrassed by his irresponsible behavior.

  Jake sweeps an arm around my shoulders when we hit the foyer and pulls me away from the group into the formal living room. He bores his soft brown eyes into mine for a few breaths, waiting for the guys to be far enough away that they can’t here the impending interrogation.

  “Did he hurt you?” he grinds out.

  “No, Jake, he didn’t hurt me,” I say softly running a hand up to his cheek.

  “Promise me?” he whispers.

  “I swear.”

  He wraps me in a tight hug when we hear a throat clear from my husband.

  “We good?” he asks in a concerned tone.

  “Just makin’ sure I don’t need to kill you,” Jake says grimly, uncurling from my embrace.

  “I would never hurt her, Jake. Never,” Nick states ardently.

  They stare each other down for a few moments before Jake offers Nick a manly chin lift.

  As we make our way to the garage where the boys are already in my SUV, Nick grabs my bicep to stop my progression letting Jake go ahead.

  Jake stops and turns toward us. His face is ridged and I see the often missing man take over his features. Nick’s hand drops from my arm as he notices the change along with me.

  “Some kids at school have been talkin’ about a rise in domestics available around here. I haven’t gotten much detail because what the fuck should a fifteen-year-old care about that for. The pace of this op is wearing me out and you two fighting and whatever else is goin’ on isn’t helpin’ shit. Get it together for the op’s sake,” he finishes sternly.

  “We’re good, Jake,” Nick assures him.

  “’Bout fuckin’ time,” Jake huffs, striding away from us before climbing into my SUV. I move to follow, when Nick stops me again with his hands on my shoulders.

  He turns me to face him before wrapping his big hand around the side of my neck, holding me in place.

  “I would never hurt you, Kat. I’m sorry for last night and I’ll make it up to you. That said, you need to cancel your date with Jason Ross before I put him six feet under and have another temper tantrum.”

  There’s no joke or smirk, he’s dour.

  “I don’t have a date with Jason. It’s a team dinner. No need to get homicidal,” I soothe trying to pull away so I can get the boys to school.

  He keeps his hand on my neck, not letting go.

  “Nicky, the boys are gonna be late,” I complain, pulling his hand off me.

  He ignores my plea and yanks me against him with one strong arm behind my back.

  “He doesn’t touch you again. He doesn’t eye fuck you. He doesn’t breathe your air,” Nick dictates in a low growl with some fury flaring in his eyes.

  “I’ll do my best. I don’t think I can control eye fucking though, Nicky,” I say, again trying to pull away. He just clutches me harder.

  “Kat,” he warns.

  “Do you want me to stab him if he eye fucks me? I don’t know what you want me to do to stop that behavior from happening. He’s not the only man that does it. It happens. It doesn’t mean I’m gonna go home with ’em and make it a reality. Now let me go so I can get the boys to school,” I demand, pushing him in the chest with both hands as my horn sounds.

  Instead of letting me go or acting like he hears the horn, he devours my lips in a bruising assault, one hand forcefully grabbing my ass the other at the nape of my neck. I no longer hear my horn and melt into him as his tongue massages and caresses mine. Nick pulls my bottom lip between his teeth nibbling and suckling before letting me go.

  “I’ll see you at the game,” he murmurs into my forehead after placing a chaste kiss there. “Don’t ever talk about another guy fuckin’ you, eye or otherwise. That makes me homicidal.”

  I snicker but nod in agreement. He pats my ass twice, indicating I’ve been released. I turn and hurry toward the SUV, the boys staring at me like I’ve grown two heads on top of the two they’re already struggling with.

  “Sorry,” I mutter, speeding out of the garage and driveway.

  “Must’ve been good make up sex,” Dane declares with a shit-eating grin smeared on his face.

  I glare at him in the rearview mirror until we all fall into fits of laughter. He’s right though. Best make up sex ever.

  Nick

  Kat flies out of the driveway at top speed to get the boys to school, as I make my way back into the kitchen to get some coffee before I clean up my temper tantrum mess. My dick got in the way of my ability to think about the aftermath of our fight. I never should have left it for the boys to find this morning. The looks on their faces are some I never want to witness again.

  So yeah, it’s been an interesting nine hours. Let me start by saying Kat is un-fucking-believable in bed. She rocked my world and then some. Then she dropped her birth control bomb this morning and my brain glitched out.

  In truth, I know she’s not supposed to be on birth control. It was stipulated in the dossier for the op, but I never really thought about it. Never thought it would be an issue. It’s an issue now that I’ve pumped her full of my swimmers. And I can honestly say, I don’t give a shit.

  That’s not true, because if she’s pregnant I’m going to want her off the op. I’m aware that won’t fly with Kat and will end in an ugly fight that I don’t want to have. I also have the overwhelming urge to pull her and all the boys out of Maybelle and live off the grid for the rest of time. I’ve turned into a caveman worse than I already am.

  I meant what I said to Kat this morning. I want her. I want to keep her as my wife without doing all the other shit that leads up to it. As far as I can tell, it’s overrated. I can’t really date my wife. I’ve been dating her for the last three months. I take her out to dinner, we’ve been to the movies, we had a picnic in the park in September when the weather was still warm, and we’ve had family excursions to the fall festival and a couple hikes in the mountains. I don’t need to start over with her. I’m right where I want to be. This last month has shown me what I’m missing without her. And now that she’s willingly giving me all of her, I’m not letting go.

  I’d like to put my own ring on her finger and exchange vows for real though. I have no desire to see her in a “poofy” dress. I’d settle for her and the boys on a beach barefoot any day. This relationship with the boys is complicated. We’re going to have to leave them. That’s going to kill Kat and I won’t fair much better. We’ve become a strange family that works seamlessly. If we could get the three of them emancipated we could take them with us. We’d have to tell them the truth about us and that could be tricky, but it would be worth it in the end. Kat and I need to discuss this and come up with a plan.

  I rinse my mug out and start cleaning up the shattered glass when the doorbell rings. Checking my beyond expensive watch I find it’s just after nine. A little early for visitors. I peer through the peephole and crack my neck from side to side at the face grinning on the other side. I pull the door open with a blank expression, preparing for any and everything.

  “Nick, I wasn’t expecting you to be here,” Jason says with a sly grin. “Kat around?”

  “My wife is not home,” I state with a glower, causing his grin to widen.

  This motherfucker has a death wish.

  “I’ll swing around later.”

  “No, you won’t,” I command taking a few steps toward him.

  “Kat’s a big girl, Nick. I think she can decide who she makes friends with on her own.”

  “She can and does. I, however, don’t let men around my wife that have the desire to fuck her. So you will stay away from my wife.”

  “I’m the boys’ coach. She’s their transportation most of the time so I’ll be around… a lot. We’ll see if she wants to continue our friendship after a few afternoons with me,” he says smugly.

  “You’ve got som
e fuckin’ balls. I’ll put this another way. You come around my wife again, touch my wife again, look at my wife in any way in other than blankly…I’ll destroy you. Anything and everything that you love in this world will meet untimely and unfortunate accidents. You’ll suffer in ways horror movies attempt to scare people with. Your life will disintegrate around you until I dump your body in the wilderness where you’ll be praying for death,” I growl.

  His face has paled and he’s taken two steps back from me.

  “You’re fuckin’ crazy,” he says with wide eyes.

  “When it comes to my family I am. Get the fuck off my property and don’t come back. And if you even think about fuckin’ with Jake or Cole to mess with me, the promises I just made will get twice as bad. Now nod your bitch head so I know you get what I’m tellin’ you,” I command.

  He tries to buck up, but fails, offering me a chin lift and practically runs to his SUV. I watch his punk ass speed out of my driveway. Pussy.

  Shutting the door, I go about cleaning and getting ready for the day. I can’t wait to see what rumors that interaction causes.

  I walk into the gym just before tip-off. The boys are in a huddle with Jason, so they don’t see me enter. I scan the bleachers to find Kat standing with Sawyer and Dane, bouncing with excitement. Quickly, I squeeze and climb my way to half my family.

  “Hey!” I yell over the roar of the crowd as the cheerleaders finish off their routine to the amazement of the boys who are glued to the two girls they went to homecoming with. I think condoms need to be purchased soon for the boys. Maybe I can snag some of theirs…that’s not weird or anything. Plus they’d notice when a few were missing. So much for that plan.

  “Hey!” Kat yells back, beaming a huge smile at me.

  She’s wearing slim chinos and a short sleeved cream colored sweater with a low sweeping neck-line. I’ve already caught a few of the men in here staring at her and a lot of the teenage boys. My wife is hot so I can’t blame them even if it makes my blood boil.

  So I behave like a caveman and tag the back of her head crushing my mouth to hers in an inappropriate kiss for a high school basketball game. I don’t give a fuck. What’s even better is she wraps her arms around my neck and leans into me. She likes it. I pull away from her when the lights go down for the team introductions. Kat looks up at me with hazy sex-filled eyes before shaking it off and coming back to reality.

  I kiss her forehead swiftly before shrugging out of my suit jacket and rolling up my sleeves to the elbows all while the crowd boos at the opposing team as they’re introduced. I’m still getting a few looks after my alpha male claiming of Kat, but no one is looking at her anymore so my plan worked.

  I sweep my arm around her shoulders and she reaches up interlacing her fingers with mine. We’re still standing waiting for the team to be introduced when I feel eyes on my back. I turn to find Phil standing a few rows behind us. I offer him a chin lift and he returns it with a cocky grin indicating his head toward Kat. That’s either props for having a hot wife or props for marking my territory, I don’t know which. It doesn’t really matter so I smile back before turning my attention to the court.

  The starters are all seniors other than Jake so I’m surprised when he’s introduced last. I’m even more surprised at the raucous applause that follows his name being announced. The bleachers vibrate with force and my ears wince in pain from the squeals of the girls around us. Kat, Sawyer and Dane lose their shit right along with the crowd. Jake turns his gaze to the bleachers, finding us quickly. The smile that lights his face makes my stomach flip. That kid loves us. I don’t know where or what he comes from other than it’s deep and dark. Fuck me if that’s nowhere to be seen in his eyes in this moment.

  I smile down at him with pride like a father to a son. I know Jake’s a grown ass man, but I feel responsible for him. And I’m so fucking proud of him right now I can hardly contain it so I put my fingers in my mouth and release a deafening whistle just for him. Kat squeezes my fingers as the boys line up. I look down into her gorgeous hazel eyes where tears are holding themselves at bay but only just. I kiss her nose and she closes her eyes, pushing down the emotion before pulling me to sit next to her.

  “That was some show your boy put on,” Phil congratulates clapping me on the back.

  We’re waiting in the gym for Jake and Cole after an earth shattering performance by Jake. I’ve never seen him with a rifle, but what I just witnessed…Jake has more talent than he gives himself credit for.

  “Twenty-four points, twelve assists and ten rebounds…he was fuckin’ amazing,” Phil continues.

  “That he was,” I agree, catching Kat’s eyes from across the gym where she’s talking to some other moms.

  She beams me a smile before excusing herself from the group, making her way back to me. Her movements are effortless, yet they seem to require so much. A flip of her hair, the sway of her hips, the swing of her arms, it’s all overwhelming to take in.

  Kat slides an arm around my waist before sticking her free hand out to Phil.

  “I don’t believe we’ve met. I’m Kat Johnson,” she says brightly.

  “Pleasure’s all mine,” he says, roughly pressing his lips to her knuckles before letting her go.

  I steel myself against the desire to rip his lips off his face and sew them to his ass when Kat gives me an encouraging squeeze. I return the pressure with my arm around her shoulders.

  “Your husband kicked my butt last night,” Phil informs Kat.

  “I’m sorry to hear that. I’ve asked him to ease up on you boys,” she says sweetly.

  “I doubt that,” he scoffs. “I’m sure keepin’ a woman like you in shoes and bags can always use some padding in the bank roll.”

  I take a deep breath before I unleash, only to be cut off by my amazing wife.

  “Actually, we donate his winnings to charity. Always have. My shoes and bags come from the sweat off his brow and he enjoys workin’ for what we’ve got. He also likes the reward of me beneath him at the end of every day. I’ll be sure to have another talk with him about bein’ so successful at the poker game though. It was nice meeting you, but you’ll have to excuse us. We’ve got four boys to get home,” she finishes coolly.

  Phil is stunned stupid and simply nods as Kat steers me away.

  “I fuckin’ hate these people,” she grinds out through a smile directed at a group of parents.

  I grab her left hand to pull her to me and find it’s a little light in the jewelry department. In fact, it’s a different ring all together.

  “A couple of the diamonds came loose on the other one,” she explains. “The local jeweler said he’d have my rings back tomorrow. Gave me this as a ‘place holder’.”

  “Do you like your ring?” I ask wondering if I could convince her to not pick up her old one and let me get her a new one.

  “Yes and no,” she says with a shrug.

  “How’s that?”

  “Not really the place to discuss it, Nicky,” she admonishes, curling into my side a bit more. Almost immediately she’s gone, running toward Jake in a full sprint as he exits the locker room. Jake’s face splits in two with a wide grin as she heaves herself into his arms, almost knocking him down. They hold each other tightly, drawing some looks from the other parents that are merely trading smiles and back pats with their children. Pussies.

  Cole comes out of the locker room and I see his face drop when he finds Kat’s already occupied. Fuck that. I move to him in a few strides and wrap him in a bear hug clapping his back firmly.

  “Good game, bud,” I congratulate, releasing him and squeezing the side of his neck.

  “Thanks, Nick,” he says with a relieved smile.

  Kat passes me Jake and wraps Cole up in her arms with no less intensity than she offered Jake. I grab Jake similarly to how I’d grabbed Cole, squeezing the shit out of him.

  “Proud of you,” I murmur in his ear before letting him go, again with a neck squeeze.

  Jake gi
fts me a giant toothy cocky grin and I chuckle. Sawyer and Dane come barreling over to us, fist bumping the guys and immediately start rehashing the game highlights giving Cole’s performance off the bench plenty of attention too.

  I notice Regan and her posse hovering near the exit of the building as we make our way out.

  “Can we go for ice cream?” Sawyer asks, eyeing the girls with his big brown eyes beneath his shaggy black hair that I heard Kat threaten to cut in his sleep if he doesn’t keep it out of his eyes. Apparently, the homecoming haircuts have grown out faster than she likes.

  “You boys wanna go on your own?” I ask knowing no fifteen-year-olds want to hang out with their parents—even if we’re not parents—on a Friday night.

  “You don’t wanna go with us?” Sawyer asks with a hurt tone in his voice and I want to kick myself in the balls. Of course they want us with them. They’ve missed out on the normalcy of a family outing after a game.

  “No place I’d rather be. Just thought you’d want some alone time with your ladies,” I reply, nodding toward their admirers.

  “They’ll be there too. Everyone will be,” Cole responds coolly, like he couldn’t care less if the girls are there or not. I furrow my brow before Dane explains his reaction.

  “You’re just pissed because Avery went down on Beckett last weekend. Fuckin’ forget about her,” he admonishes his friend.

  “Was she goin’ down on you too?” Kat asks sheepishly.

  Cole turns bright red and stares at his shoes.

  “Sunshine, kinda my department, not yours,” I inform her with a pat on her ass as I let her go and wrap my arm around Cole’s shoulders.

  “Hey, I know about suckin’ dick,” she argues somewhat loudly for the venue, causing the boys to chuckle nervously.

  “Kat,” I chide with my own chuckle as she realizes what she just did and bursts into her own laughter.

  I pull Cole aside after settling Kat in the passenger seat while the boys maneuver into the SUV. It has seven seats, but the third row is a little crammed for growing teenage boys to squeeze into.